Never Too Late
by Fire Kunai
Summary: William Anderson won't let his father send his sister, Jennifer, to the Farms. *Prequel piece to Gears of War 2: Crimson Cross.*


**Summary: William Anderson won't let his sister be taken to the Farms. *Companion piece to Gears of War 2: Crimson Cross***

**Crimson Cross isn't dead yet. With Gears of War 3 out soon, I'mma still thinking and working on it (It will probably end up as an AU now cos of all the stuff I've seen of the campaign) Been suffering from exams and writers block so I threw this together in an attempt to shake off my terrible disease.**

**There's a quote from the manga/anime of Bleach in here somewhere**

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><p><strong>Gears of War:<strong> Never Too late

"**Even if I say it'll be alright  
>Still I hear you say you want to end your life<br>Now and again we try to just stay alive  
>Maybe we'll turn it around 'cause it's not too late<br>It's never too late."  
>-Three Days Grace, Never Too Late<strong>

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><p>William Anderson eyed his father with nothing less than contempt. He could hardly believe that the man sitting across from him made up half of his DNA and hoped that perhaps his mother had had an affair in her younger years. Sadly, it was not the case for William Anderson was able to clearly see the resemblance between himself and the older, silent man sitting across from him. They had eyes that were a similar shade of navy blue and shared the same jet black hair. True, the senior man's hair was streaked with so much grey there was hardly any black to be seen.<p>

"What is this?" William dropped the stapled pieces of paper in front of his father.

The commander looked up and gave his son a swift glance. "A transfer form."

"Yes. It's for Jenny."

Anderson's battered parker pen paused for a minute then carried on. "I can see that."

William felt his last nerve ping and he struggled to hold himself together. "Have you seen it?"

"Yes."

The younger officer narrowed his eyes. "Do you have any idea what will happen to her there?"

The man at the desk looked up and finally met William's eyes. They had as much life in them as a dead fish. "Yes I do. She would be adding the war effort this way." The commander said the words with such indifference that it was as if the female in question was not related to him in the slightest.

William was torn between punching in his father in the face or lobbing a lamp at him. Either sounded mighty sweet to the lieutenant. He sucked in a breath between his chapped lips and tried desperately to remain calm. "You'd condemn your only daughter to a life of rape?" Never had he been so angry, so willing to challenge someone of a higher rank.

And that just never happened.

The Anderson family always followed orders.

"It is hardly rape son. She can be inseminated artificially. There might not be any intercourse involved. She would be looked after and cared for. Women are in short supply as it is," Commander Anderson reasoned as if he was speaking about a brood mare rather than his youngest child.

The thought of it all horrified William. The younger officer felt sick to his stomach, almost to the point where he feared he would hurl right onto the commander's nice plush carpet. It would teach the older Anderson a lesson to be sure but somehow, William was sure that it would not help his Jennifer's predicament. He trembled with rage and fear for his sister. His sweet baby sister with her large, dark blue eyes and her adorable fumbling ways. Jennifer was so very little and put him in mind of a flower that had had its growth stunted by war. Any Gear would snap her in half. William was not entirely sure if she could even handle childbirth. "That's bullshit and you know it! We both know what happens at those damn farms! It would kill her!" Inwardly, William marvelled at his own courage. He never raised his voice to his father and was nothing but polite to him but now, his anger spilled from him without constraints.

Anderson senior waved to a pile of incident reports on his desk. William did not even have to look at them to know they were his sister's records. He had looked through them himself and none of them were pretty. "You've seen the reports. You know the rules. What else can I do with her?"

"You know what else those records say? They say that Jenny is a very smart girl. She has a photographic memory. Put that to good use somewhere."

The older man gave a bark of harsh laughter that hurt more than the sound of nails rubbing against a chalkboard. "You give your sister more credit that she deserves. How can she be in the military when she's failed basic twice. She's crashed a military vehicle that took weeks to repair. She shot her firearms instructor for God's sake. She has no talent and I have no interest in her."

William stood up abruptly, slamming his palms against the desk top. He still the sting through his gloved palms but decided he didn't care. "She's your daughter! Doesn't that account for something?"

Anderson senior raised an eyebrow, his face perfectly composed. He looked as if he should have been running for office rather than commanding armies. William wondered if he took lessons from Chairman Prescott. "I can't favour my children. You know that."

The younger officer almost laughed out loud at the indignity of it all. "You can't honestly expect me to believe that," William snapped at the hypocrite, every nerve in his body alive and raging. He knew his father favoured him and pulled more strings than a puppet master to make army life easier for the oldest Anderson child. The officer felt a wave of disgust towards his father. "You try and go through with this and I'll fight you every step of the way. Hell, I'll kill any bastard who puts a hand on her," William stated, his fury and ire giving him unbridled courage to challenge his father.

"You'd risk your career and be willing to end up like Marcus Fenix for Jennifer?" Anderson senior asked, locking his eyes with his son.

William stared straight back, jaw locked in rage. "You're gods damned right I would. You should as well."

The older Anderson scowled deeply at his son. "I am not going to argue with you over this William. Jennifer is to be transferred from the Air Corps to one of the Farms in a few days. I can keep her safe this way. Do not you want that? For your sister to be safe?"

William frowned right back. He could see the angle his father was playing as clear as sunkissed crystal. It was game that William was familiar with. Anderson Senior was trying to manipulate the situation and get his own way while attempting to make the younger officer feel guilty – all the while keeping his hands lily white. William almost smiled. His father was nothing if not predictable. "You tell yourself that if it helps you sleep at night _father._ I won't let you do this." He stepped away from the desk and balled his hands to stop himself from reaching over and hauling his father of his chair for a good beating.

"The preparations have already been made."

William glared at him. "I'll take this higher."

Anderson senior met his son's glare. "Since when have you ever cared about what happened to your sister? As I recall, this is the first I have seen you take an interest in her."

The words cut deep, deeper than any Lancer blade because of how true it was. William was first to admit to himself that he did not look after Jennifer was well as he should of. His younger sister had never been a particularly strong girl and had been sick often as a child to the point where she needed a new kidney. He rarely saw Jennifer when he was younger as Anderson Senior made sure that his son was sent away to all the best military and schools that his money could buy (Something William had never wanted to begin with) The result was an estranged relationship with his family, particularly with the female members. He knew his tutors and officers better than he knew his mother and sister. It was a regret that weighed on him more heavily than his COG issued armour and only seemed to increase with each passing day. "I'm first to admit that I haven't been a good brother her but I can't stand by and let you do this to her. You know why big brothers are born first father? To protect the little ones that come after them."

The older man snorted. "Enough of this nonsense William. It's too late for Jennifer. We both know better," he replied sharply.

"No, it's never too late to try." William fired back, the passion in his own words startling him somewhat.

The commander stared at him for a moment, his expression unreadable. He then went back to his paper work as if the conversation had never happened. "You are dismissed William."

"But – "

Anderson senior looked and frowned deeply. "I said dismissed Lieutenant. I will have you escorted out of here if necessary."

The younger officer winced slightly at the warning evident in the older man's tone. William brought his up into a crisp salute nevertheless, an action that was defiant than respectful. "This isn't over," he responded. Before his father could utter a word, William turned on his heel and marched out of the office; slamming the door as hard as he possibly could on the way out. The cool air in the corridor rushed to meet him, rinsing away his anger. Above him, the lights flickered on and off, threatening to die out completely. The generators that powered the office building were jerry rigged from the parts from older generators. Naturally, they didn't always work.

Under the temperamental lighting, William leaned against the wall and ran a gloved palm over his face. He was to go on patrol in an hours time and did not have the faintest clue who on earth he could go to for help. Chairman Prescott had dissolved the Unions and their type when he released the Fortification Act. With the Locust constantly attacking, fair working policies had become the least of priorities. Basic human rights became a wistful dream from a better time when they could afford them.

He had been do deep in his mental calculations and reasoning that he did not notice that he was joined in the corridor by another.

"William?" a voice asked, barely above a whisper.

The dark haired man looked up and met the blue eyed gaze of his twenty two year old sister Jennifer. Unlike William, the Anderson daughter swung to their mother's side of being very small. She was black haired like him and had navy blue eyes that were hidden behind thick framed glasses. She was permanently pale – almost sickly looking. She stood in front of him in simple civilian attire, hands fidgeting at her sides. He felt his throat tighten uncomfortably. Did she even know what awaited her? "Hey Jenny. What are you doing here?"

"I came to see father," she answered. The young female then tried to smile but it looked as if she were about to burst into tears. William felt an awkward wave wash over him and he was unsure what to say to her. He had exhausted himself verbally clashing against their sire. "Father...He...he told me I'm getting transferred again...I-I'm scared William. I don't want to go the Farms." Jennifer wrapped her arms around her torso, hugging herself tightly.

The dark haired man looked at his father's office door. "Stubborn bastard. He honestly thinks he is doing you a favour."

Jennifer looked at him with those Anderson blue eyes, magnified by the thick lensed glasses she wore. "Could you..." She hesitated for a moment. "Can you talk to him? He would listen to you."

William gave a heavy sigh and rubbed his tired eyes. "I just tried. He is so stuck in his own ways," he replied.

"But-But I'll try harder. I-I will get better. I can be useful, I really can. I won't crash anything again. Please William? Please?"

The man felt deflated of energy and utterly helpless to answer his sisters pleads. "I don't know what else to do Jennifer. I'm sorry."

Pain flashed across her doll-like face. "Oh...Okay. Well, you tried and I guess that's what counts..." The female trailed off and bowed her head, jet black locks hiding her face from his view. Her shoulders trembled and William heard the sound of a sob being suppressed. The anger nestled within his chest towards his father increased tenfold, as did the determination to help her. William knew he could not change twenty years of absence in her life but he could make sure that his sister was not condemned to a life of rape and continual pregnancy.

William stood up from his place against the wall and reached out for his shoulder. He placed his hand upon her shoulder and Jennifer jumped at the contact. She looked up at him, her cheeks moist. "Go back to your barracks. There's nothing that can be done now." William didn't want to feed her hope. He was not entirely sure he could live with himself if he failed later knowing he had given her false hope. He knew his sister enough to know she would cling to it until the end.

Jennifer wiped her nose on her sleeve and tried to smile for what William suspected was more his sake than hers. "Okay then. Goodbye William. Thank you for trying." She looked as if she wanted to hug him but thought better of it. William was thankful. Such a gesture would have been socially awkward for both of them. Navy blue eyes watched her turn around and disappear back down the flickering corridor.

_I'm sorry Jennifer. I wasn't there for you. I'm going to make things as right as I can for you in this fucked up world. I swear it. _

Once he was certain she was gone, William Anderson straightened up and dusted off his armour to attempt to make himself more presentable. He did not stop fidgeting with his appearance even when he stood outside Colonel Victor Hoffman's ready room half an hour later.

William sucked in a breath of oxygen, steeled his nerves and gathered up every shred of confidence he possessed. The gear tapped at the door sharply and waited for the gruff, grizzly voice of his commander officer to signal him in.

_You know why big brothers are born first Father? To protect the little ones that come after them_.

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><p>The next day, Jennifer Anderson was transferred the COG's medical department.<p>

On the same day, William Anderson lead an suicide assault into Locust held territory.


End file.
